Weekly Math Updates

June 20, 2007

Contents:

Secondary Math Standards Online

Media Articles

Audio Archive

Losing our Country

Constitution Class

On Air Friday

The Muppet Show

Hi all,

Well, I'm grateful you're still with me. Samuel Adams said, "It does not take a majority to prevail... but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men.” You are that tireless minority. This is your battle and your day. Keep the faith and keep on lighting those fires.

Secondary Math Standards Online

I have received word that the secondary math standards are online for review and comment. I have also received word that exponents and logarithms would NOT be in the standards for algebra 2 except that the EXTERNAL REVIEWER IN CALIFORNIA SAID THEY NEEDED TO BE. Unbelievable.

For those of you that can review the document or at least a couple parts and then make comments here's a link to the standards and a link to the survey the State Department of Education would like to have people take.

"Reform math has been used for more than a decade in schools nationwide, including some public schools in New York City and its suburbs, but some have moved away from it recently amid concern that it leaves students with a shaky grasp of the basics. The opposition accelerated after a September 2006 report by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, the nation’s leading group of math teachers, that recommended a tighter focus on basic math skills and narrower state standards."

"School districts say they're happy about it. The teachers will be filling positions that districts can't seem to staff right now. At the same time, the teachers will help a growing population of Hispanic students in the state. School districts are having a harder and harder time finding elementary school teachers, science and math teachers."

Anyone buying this? We don't have teachers in Utah wanting teaching jobs??? Why is it every time a school opens they magically have teachers? What we're witnessing is the desire of our governor and others to integrate more openly with Mexico. Why are we even hiring Mexican teachers? If we want kids to integrate into America, immerse them in English. Here's what the Governattor had to say:

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger told a gathering of Hispanic journalists that immigrants should avoid Spanish-language media if they want to learn English quickly."You've got to turn off the Spanish television set" and avoid Spanish-language television, books and newspapers, the Republican governor said Wednesday night at the annual convention of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. "You're just forced to speak English, and that just makes you learn the language faster," Schwarzenegger said. "I know this sounds odd and this is the politically incorrect thing to say, and I'm going to get myself in trouble," he said, noting that he rarely spoke German and was forced to learn English when he emigrated from Austria.

Anyone else noticed the complete disregard for our national soverignty coming from Washington these days? I mean it used to be that things happened in the background but now they're flaunted and displayed openly with contempt and complete disregard for the public. I'm a lifelong Republican and I'm ready to see Bush impeached, and the sad thing is there are multiple reasons why that I think are all pretty valid. Between not protecting the country (border issues), trying to give up U.S. soverignty by forming a continental government to supercede the national one (see the article linked to above), to this latest immigration bill that died a week ago and now Bush is trying to ram it down our throats when 70-80% of the country is against it. On the surface, it just doesn't make sense for this to even be happening. These things will dramatically affect our lifestyle and freedoms.

Constitution Class

There is an upcoming seminar on constitutional studies in a couple weeks for anyone that wants to attend.

“U.S. citizens should follow the First Presidency’s counsel to study the Constitution. (First Presidency letter of 15 Jan 1987). They should be familiar with its great fundamentals: the separation of powers, the individual guarantees in the Bill of Rights, the structure of federalism, the sovereignty of the people, and the principles of the rule of the law. They should oppose any infringement of these inspired fundamentals.” Dallin H. Oaks, “The Divinely Inspired Constitution,” Ensign, Feb 1992, 68

Making of America Seminar General Outline:

Lion’s Club, 610 E. Center St., Pleasant Grove, Utah

Saturday, July 7, 2007

8:30am-12:00pm - "Developing America's Great Success Formula"

This is the exciting exploration which Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Washington and others made in order to rediscover the key to the creation of the first free nation in modern times. We trace their adventure from 1400 B.C. to A.D. 1787.

12:00-12:45pm - Lunch break

12:45pm-4:30pm - "The Perfect Plan of Liberty"

A refreshing look at the solid political and economic principles from the preamble through the amendments to the Constitution. You learn perhaps for the first time, how nearly every problem in America today can be solved by restoring these successful concepts.

I previously mentioned where I got my warped sense of humor from was a combination of Spock and Fozzy Bear. I left out one of the great shows of my childhood, Mission Impossible. For years I have waited for these to come out on DVD and last year the Muppets arrived and Mission Impossible finally did this year. As I'm assuming everyone knows, there's not a lot of good stuff on TV to watch and staying as busy as I do, I don't have time for it anyway unless something comes along and blows my socks off with how cool it is (like Babylon 5). Anyway, I'm excited because I just learned that The Muppet Show season 2 is going to be released soon and it's a must have for me. If you're one of those Muppet fanatics, here's a link to the second season. If you don't have the first season, it's great and there's some really great songs my kids still talk about and try to sing months later. It's being released August 7th but you can preorder it now if you want.